Skinfather - Succession / Possession [EP] (2013, Life and Death Records)

Death metal never quite goes out of fashion. Death metal is always the new black, and when you thought every aspect of death metal had been put completely through its paces, a new band comes along and gives the genre new life. The Carolina-based death metal band "Skinfather" may not be the most unique of bands, but they excel in the fact that they write really good death metal with a heavy tinge of the early Swedish scene.

The EP that the band rather aptly named "Succession / Possession" features nothing more than 3 tracks, two of which are original compositions, and as such is a bit on the short side of things. Clocking in at around 12 minutes I'd like to start out by saying that it feels a bit short. Just when you're really getting into the music the EP is over, and it's a damn shame, 'cause the music really is something. The EP, while rather short, falls under the category "short and simple, yet enjoyable". It's clear that the band is right on the money with this style, because they play it vigorously well and collectively have a great sense for pace and dynamics.

"Succession" couldn't be more rightfully named. Skinfather follow the same trends that the titans of the Swedish scene did in the late 80's and early 90's, though with a slower, less thrashy feel to it. As such the American band added to the time-tested recipe a higher sense of power and heaviness than the bands they succeed. Likewise the song "Possession" leaves me with no doubt that the band are possessed by the will to make great death metal.

As I said earlier the EP is a bit shorter than what I'd have liked. The cover of "Execute Them All", originally written by Unleashed, goes great hand in hand with Succession and Possession as the three tracks are all propelled by the same heavy, groovy power that Skinfather so masters, but when we get down to the numbers, a third of the EP consists of covers. The cover is very well executed and fits well with the rest of the material, but I feel as though Skinfather's own material would be better presented in a larger quantity, though that may also become tedious, seeing as the band's songs are mostly composed of the same slow or mid-tempo riffs which have a very heavy feel to them. This recipe is what I enjoy most about them, and two songs most likely aren't representative of the band's writing ability, but an entire album of this exact formula might be overkill.
Obviously this is all guess work, so to sum things up, Skinfather display themselves as a mighty force in death metal songwriting, and for the prodigious power they represent on Succession / Possession I give them 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Succession
2. Possession
3. Execute Them All (Unleashed Cover)

SKINFATHER official Facebook site
Life and Death Records official site

Six in Line - U Shud Hev Invtd Me [Demo] (2011, Self-released)

I like when a band doesn't take itself all too seriously. If a musician takes everything a bit too seriously it often results in coming across as self-important or pompous, but on the other hand it can easily go the other way too. In most cases so-called "comedy" or "humour" bands are too busy living out their own inside-jokes to produce good, worthwhile music, so in essence what I'm saying is that it's all about finding a middle way.

Six in Line from Sweden are at heart a thrash metal band, but with the aesthetics of a comedy band. The three tracks on their second release, the demo "U Shud Hev Invtd Me", are primarily comprised of mid-to-high tempo thrash riffs, pounding drums and vocals that can probably be best described as "unique". I'll get back to this later.
The demo starts off with a sort of spooky halloween-ish riff, and I found that this was more or less a recurring theme on U Shud Hev Invtd Me with that type of melodies being prominent in both "You Should Have Invited Me" and the gangshout-ridden "We Intend to Hang You". It works fairly well for the Swedish band, and when all is said and done this element is what to me sounds like their strongest point. Their vein of thrash metal works pretty well for them, but if it wasn't for the melodic riffs to top it all off their material would be an unmemorable, incoherent mess.

My main complaint with Six in Line's second demo is the vocals. Remember that I said they were rather unique? That's a nice way of saying they suck tremendously. Kaptajn Nuke's raw, discordant screaming is simply too out of place and annoying to the main form of singing in such a band.
The music in itself isn't completely terrible, but something about it just makes me get tired of it really fast. Probably the fact that it sounds pretty undynamic - I'm not saying that they lack variation, but the music really does go on and on in the same vein all the time with no clearly defined verse, chorus or anything else that might resemble structure.
Let's compare Six in Line with Hellhammer. Hellhammer's sound is completely raw and awful, they could barely play their instruments, Tom Warrior's vocals were pretty amateurishly done and their sense for song writing was at times pretty unmatured due to their inexperience. And yet they were fuckin' awesome. I'd like to credit that awesomeness to memorable song structures. Riffs like the one in "Reaper" and choruses like in "Crucifixion" make Hellhammer really easy to remember, and while Six in Line definitely have the upper hand when it comes to technicality, playing skill and production, they simply lack that memorability created by having a great sense of songwriting, which Tom Warrior later proved with Celtic Frost.

Six in Line may yet come through and prove their worth as a band. Their latest demo to me isn't much in terms of musicianship, but they do have their moments. Perhaps they still need to find their style, but right now I can only give "U Shud Hev Invtd Me" 5 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. You Should Have Invited Me
2. Plato O Plomo
3. We Intend to Hang You

SIX IN LINE official Facebook site

Listen for yourself

Malichor - Lurkers in the Crypt [EP] (2012, Self-released)

One of my major beefs with black/thrash is that some bands tend to take the easy way and make it sound like terribly simplistic bedroom black metal with a few thrashy riffs and d-beats strewn around here and there. All in moderation, really - It's not like Desaster is the most technically advanced band ever, and Deströyer 666 often follow the exact same patterns in songwriting. But the difference is that those two bands do it with moderation; Their music may not be the most varied of sorts and may not have crystal clear production, but they make it work and make up for any shortcomings in brilliant songwriting.

A band that has chosen to take the high road is Australia's black/thrash quintet Malichor. The Lovecraft-themed band don't overdo anything. It's straight to the core black and thrash metal in equal amounts, and it works astonishingly well for them. Their recipe for disaster consists of iconic, catchy riffs over a high tempo rhythm section made up of a thrashy and audible bass aswell as drums presenting varying degrees of blasting. The vocals too are greatly varied, ranging from animalistically roaring growls to the more classic, rasping black metal vocals.
Though melody is seldom part of the equation in black/thrash metal, Malichor has found room for a rather melodic riff in the track Jackal's Spell. I was worried that it would break the malicious atmosphere that the band had already by the second track created on the EP, but I found that it added another element of mysticism to the music that fits Malichor's Lovecraftian style very well.

It's obvious that Malichor take a lot of influences from the 80's, both in their stage names and their music. But to me "Lurkers in the Crypt" is so much more than blatant 80's worship. It's not so much that they're revolutionizing the genre, because let's face it, they aren't. But in later years it seems all bands are either tighty than a nun with crystal clear production, or the directly opposite, making Hellhammer sound like the afforementioned. Malichor found a great median between the two. Their half-sloppy playing provides the EP with some much appreciated dynamic, and I found the EP to be very well written in general. Of the four tracks on the EP there aren't really any tracks weaker than the others, and all the tracks provide the release with it's own element to make it a wholesome experience. "Jackal's Spell" provides the more melodic elements aswell as a pumping headbanging piece, even if melody is something seldom seen in relation to black/thrash, and the iconic "Demonic Power of Infinity" is probably the fastest of the four tracks aswell as being the most unrelenting. It reminds me of some Norwegian black metal which combined with their hints towards Deströyer 666's memorable choruses and satanic solos makes it a breathtaking experience.

The music in itself isn't very lovecraftian and doesn't invoke visions of the great old ones or anything like that, but the cover reminds me of a certain short story by H.P. Lovecraft called "The Statement of Randolph Carter", in which the main character, Randolph Carter, describes how he and one of his associates visits an old graveyard and how his partner goes into a crypt only to suffer a horrible death to some unspeakable, unnamable horror. The whole ordeal is quite vividly described and as such, to me, goes very well hand in hand with this devilish EP.

All in all Malichor show great potential on "Lurkers in the Crypt". Their sense for songwriting and ear for riffs is astonishing. Following in the wake of a new wave of satanic speed metal they measure up to some of the genres forefathers in terms of songwriting, and I found Malichor to be just as vigorous, profane and unrelenting as some of the genre's revered progenitors. 9/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Lurkers in the Crypt
2. Jackal's Spell
3. Demonic Power of Infinity
4. Cerebral Debauchery

MALICHOR official MySpace site

Hell United - Aura Damage [Full length] (2012, Hellthrasher Productions)

Poland has had a good run of metalbands that fuse the raw brutality of death metal, the faster elements of thrash metal and the evil that drips from black metal. Like Norway produces black metal bands, Poland has in the last few years produced many great bands, including Behemoth, Hate and Vader that have probably been more or less responsible for creating this new wave of blackened death metal. I've had the pleasure of reviewing many bands like Pandemonium, Centurion, Embrional, Sphere, Stillborn and Empatic, and like these bands Hell United have sought a sound that combines the collected evils of black and death metal with some serious nods towards thrashy tendencies.

9 songs strong, Aura Damage - the second full length album from Hell United - perfectly showcases a great understanding of how to create high-tempo metal riddled with tremolo riffing and blasting drums. Songs like the sinister "Deathlike Cold", the equally fast-paced "Apostle of Plague" and the tenebrous closing track "Totality of I" are what make Aura Damage an album worth checking out if you are into the bands mentioned earlier.
The Polish quartet show great craftsmanship in the terms of writing metal, but it's not all fun and games. While the 2012 album shows great promise and provides great consistency in genuinely good songwriting, I found most of the album to border on a run of the mill type of stuff. True, the album makes for a good listen and consists of mostly pretty good songs, but in the end it all flows together into an immemorable blob, and only the three songs I mentioned earlier are really memorable.

Hell United's Aura Damage is an album that I won't deny has a good vibe to it. It yearns to be listened to, and the energy the album perveys is something speciel. But I gotta be honest and say that it isn't an album I would put on for my own listening pleasure. I wouldn't put it on for anything other than background music for when I do other stuff. But this purpose it serves greatly in that it has a great, oppressive atmosphere, good dynamic song structures and pretty good riffs. But what makes it weak as a piece in its entirity it's the fact that most of the songs sort of blend together. But even so I feel I must give Aura Damage by Hell United 7/10 guitars because of the sheer force that the work conveys.

Tracklist:
1. Red Limitations
2. Apostle of Plague
3. Deathlike Cold
4. Let the Sleeping Dogs Lie
5. Aura Damage
6. Hinterland
7. Maelstorm's Gravity
8. In Odore Sanctitatis
9. Totality of I

HELL UNITED official Facebook
Hellthrasher Productions official site

Listen for yourself!

Dead Hills - Purgatory / Winds of Time [Demo] (2012, Cloister Recordings)

I think it's safe to say that Australia's export of metal bands isn't very impressive. Other than a few bands like Portal, Psycroptic, The Berzerker, Vomitor, Abyssic Hate, Sadistik Execution, Hobbs' Angel of Death, Mortal Sin and Deströyer 666 I hardly know any Australian bands worth mentioning, and for a country its size it seems odd that the scene is so relatively small globally. As such Dead Hills with all its depressive black metal tendencies and electronic ambient elements was a rare sight for me.
The Purgatory / Winds of Time demo, which is Dead Hills' debut release, immediately struck me as having a brilliant production and sound. Having listened to a lot of bedroom black metal projects I've experienced that most people apparently think that shitty production is mandatory in black metal. Dead Hills, however, presents its material with an astoundingly solid production. It provides the music with a vigorous guitar sound that still leaves room for plenty of organic warmth aswell as audible drums.

The main thing that draws my attention is the fact that Dead Hills have a thing for epicness. There is something soaring and grandios about the sustained intrepidness of the entire demo, but especially on songs like the 15 minutes long Leaves of Ash has Weaver found room for a certain epic sound that is rarely heard otherwise in the black metal scene. The stark contrast between the tortured Varg Vikernes inspired screams and the beautifully organic and naturesque moods created by the creative riffing is also worth mentioning as this is one of the central elements that makes Dead Hills stand out from so many other black metal acts.

In a scene where there are so few internationally known bands, such as the Australian black metal scene, creating an easily recognizable sound and/or style is imperative. As such I'm not saying that Dead Hills are unique or othwerwise really original - The influences from classic 90's black metal such as Darkthrone and especially Burzum is highly prevalent and dominant, but then again Weaver has a certain touch that makes his music relatively easily distinguishable from the bands from which he takes his inspiration. One might say that the interest for the creative impulses of the classic bands have propelled Dead Hills to a more modern sound without being completely removed from the roots that spawned it.

I was told the demo is to be understood as two seperate demos/albums put into one, and the Purgatory / Winds of Time demo does seem excessively long for just one release, even if most depressive and atmospheric black metal bands tend to produce longer releases. But even so the music itself never gets boring or dreary, and I never felt that anything was missplaced or otherwise didn't fit in. I can see how it would be beneficial to split up the release as it would make it easier to focus on a few of the songs. Having to listen to 1 hour and 30 minutes straight of black metal it makes me grateful that the music doesn't such monumentally. 8/10 guitars.

Tracklist:
1. Clearing
2. Purging Fog
3. Nocturnal Hatred
4. After
5. Majesty in Mystery
6. Flight Through the Opaque
7. Twilit Trees

1. Wells
2. The Wilt
3. Haze
4. Leaves of Ash
5. Graveyards Over the Sea

DEAD HILLS official Facebook
DEAD HILLS official Bandcamp (WITH FREE DOWNLOAD!)
Cloister Recordings official site